A construction equipment manufacturer based out of Hawksville has been fined $65,000 in connection with an incident that led to a worker’s injuries.

AMI Attachments Inc. pled guilty to a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. In addition to the fine, the company will pay a 25 percent victim fine surcharge.

The incident occurred on February 15, 2024 at the company’s facility on Geddes Street in Hawksville.

A young worker was tasked with moving steel from a receiving area onto storage blocks. To lift steel parts, workers use an overhead bridge crane hooked to chains, straps or magnetic devices. The decision on what device to use is based on their knowledge and experience.

To complete the task, the worker used a magnetic lifting device, attached to a chain that hung from the crane hook to pick up a square steel tube. It was half-an-inch thick and weighted 682 lbs.

As the worker stood in an aisle between two steel racks, the steel tube became detached from the magnetic lift and fell about two feet to the floor, seriously injuring the worker.

Investigators from the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development determined that the worker was not adequately trained on the use of the overhead crane and the magnetic lifting device and they were not accompanied or instructed by a competent person when they were performing the task.

As a result, AMI Attachments was found to have failed to ensure that the measures and procedures as prescribed by section 51(2) of Ontario Regulation 851/90 were carried out at the workplace, contrary to sections 25(1)(c) and 66(1) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.